A Little Space
by shadowfire125
Summary: Ben Cop AU. GCBC have to get used to their new roommate.


_I wrote more I can't help it I want to write all the things for this AU_

* * *

GCBC was struggling to get used to having a roommate. Like, an actual roommate. They had sharing a body all worked out, but somehow sharing a space wasn't coming so easy. It hadn't even been three days, and they were ready to start tearing their hair out.

Maybe it was due to the nature of their new 'friend.'

"Hey, Cops!" came a shout from the kitchen. A young man in pajamas and a space helmet drifted, quite literally, through the doorway into the living room. His feet were almost a foot off the floor.

Bad Cop nearly tore the newspaper he was reading in half. "Ben!" he barked. "Gravity!"

"Oop," Ben said, touching down on the carpet. "Sorry, Bad."

"Better," Bad Cop growled. "Now, what is it?"

Ben held up a carton of milk. "Just wondering how long this has been in the fridge. Can't find the expiration date and it smells kinda funky."

Bad Cop harrumphed and looked back down at the paper. "Dunno. We've been meaning to do some grocery shopping."

"You should get on that, man," Ben said. "Pretty sure there's a sandwich in there starting its own little mold civilization."

"Then throw it out," Bad Cop growled, lifting the paper so he couldn't see Ben anymore, making it obvious he was not interested in this conversation. After a few moments of silence, he assumed the former Master Builder had returned to the kitchen, until a voice directly above him asked, "Any interesting news?"

This time he did tear the paper a little. "_Ben!_" Bad Cop practically wailed. "_Gravity!_"

Taken by surprise, Ben windmilled backwards in the air and dropped gracelessly to the floor. The carton of expired milk fell into Bad Cop's lap. Thankfully, it was the kind with a screw-on cap and didn't spill, but it was still heavy. Bad Cop wheezed.

"Aw, jeez," Ben said, scrambling back to his feet. "I'm sorry, man." He snatched up the carton and took a wary step back.

"Benjamin," Bad Cop said, digging his fingers into the paper so hard it was crumpling. "You have five seconds to get out of my sight."

Ben was gone in three.

Bad Cop took a deep breath and counted to ten. Good Cop, snoozing gently at the back of his mind, had been roused by the commotion and sent out a vague query.

_Just go back to sleep_, Bad Cop snapped at him.

Good Cop sulkily retreated. One of them could never _truly_ sleep while the other was awake, but taking naps in rotation meant they could go a bit longer without a full night's rest than most. It was a good ability to have as a cop.

There were sounds coming from the kitchen, clacks and clatters, running water, but they didn't really register with Bad Cop as he read an article on the latest construction project in Bricksburg. After a few minutes, he set the paper aside and picked up the crime novel that was on the coffee table in front of the armchair he was reclining in, opening it to the bookmarked page. The story was a bit simple – he'd already figured out who the murderer was – but it somehow managed to be a fun read anyway.

About an hour later, he realized that he was hungry and marked the page he was on, tossing the book back onto the coffee table as he stood. He crossed the living room and stepped into the kitchen, and immediately froze.

At first glance, the kitchen looked an absolute mess, but on closer inspection it seemed to have its own kind of organization. The refrigerator had been completely emptied, not just of food, but of its shelves as well, which had been left to dry on a towel on the counter. The drying rack by the sink was stacked with Tupperware containers, and the garbage can was full of expired food. The food that was still edible was scattered in containers on the island. The fridge door was swung wide open, and Ben was half inside it, scrubbing at its walls.

"What is going on here?" Bad Cop asked, putting his hands on his hips.

Ben leaned back on his heels to look up at Bad Cop. "Cleaning," he replied cheerfully.

"_Why_?"

Ben tilted his head, seemingly puzzled. "Well, I mean, if you're gonna go grocery shopping, it'd be kinda silly to just shove it in with the stuff that's gone bad. And now there's more space. And this thing was super grody. Besides," he added, "I've gotta pull my own weight around here, right?"

Bad Cop was taken aback, and when he didn't respond right away, Ben looked away. "I'm sorry I made you mad earlier," he said quietly.

Bad Cop found his voice again. "No, it's… it's fine. Thanks, Ben."

Ben perked up at that. "It's no problem, man. I'm just glad I can help out."

"Y-yeah," Bad Cop said, crossing his arms defensively. He wasn't good at dealing with people in a friendly manner. That was Good Cop's job. He wanted to push out his other half, but he had a feeling that he should probably continue this conversation himself. But what now? All this time, he'd been treating Ben with disdain, and even Good Cop had been aloof with him, and Bad Cop was just now realizing that maybe _they _were the difficult ones to live with. "If you like," he began haltingly, "you could come along. Pick out some food you like."

Ben was on his feet in an instant – or rather, off his feet as he floated a couple of inches in the air. "Really?" he exclaimed.

"Really," Bad Cop replied, and held back a reprimand. After all, he wasn't really _that_ high off the ground.


End file.
